Page 16 of The Wedding Favor

“I have a college friend who’s a realtor in Austin. Chris and I have been thinking about investing in property there and with you going to Austin for school, it would be a great opportunity.”

“I’m not following.” But the sinking feeling in my stomach said something different.

“She found a few options. One’s not as close to campus, but it’s bigger and⁠—”

I stopped and turned on my heels to face her, fists on my hips. “Wait a minute. Are you buying me a house?”

“Well, not exactly, Chris and I are investing in a house. It’s not for you per se. You know how Chris feels about real estate, but you could live there, stay on top of the upkeep. You’d be doing us a favor.” The determined look in her eyes slipped as they softened with emotion. “I just want to know you’ll be okay. Especially with us moving at the end of the summer. I won’t be fifteen minutes away or even a few hours by car. I’ll be states away.”

“Low blow bringing up the move,” I muttered.

The move was a touchy subject for all of us. Three years ago, Chris had retired from the NFL to be a stay-at-home dad while Mae kept her position as the head librarian at the Two Harts Library. Like everything else he did, he was a rockstar at it. He was often spotted wearing Lulu in one of those kid backpacks or showing up at Mommy and Me groups or trading recipes with other moms at the park. In his spare time, he’d gotten into real estate investment. Since he has roughly a zillion dollars both from playing with the Oklahoma Stars and brand deals, he had a lot of money to work with.

But his dream had always been medical school. He’d been accepted to Northwestern in Chicago and would start in the fall. He was leaving at the beginning of July to close on their new house and get the lay of the land before Mae and Lulu would follow at the end of the summer. This move was a huge change. Mae had lived in Two Harts since she was nine and in Texas her entire life.

The yawning pit of anxiety I’d been ignoring roared to life. Both because she wouldn’t be around to nag me and smother me and love me and because I had to tell her I wasn’t going to Austin. But how did I break the heart of one of the few people in this world who loved me? She may not always see the real me and, sure, we butted heads and flung insults, and once we’d got into an actual wrestling match over a television remote. She bossed me around and I let her because it was easy, but I knew without a doubt that my sister loved me. Just like I loved her.

“I can take care of myself,” I said gently. “You don’t have to worry about me.”

“I’m always going to worry about you. It’s just…” Her voice trailed off and for a split second, my strong, fiercely independent big sister looked lost.

“I’ll be okay,” I said, laying a hand on her arm. “Promise me you will not buy me a house in Austin.”

Mae straightened, the moment of vulnerability gone as fast as it had come, and put her arm through mine, half-dragging me to the car. “We aren’t buying you a house. I told you, it’s an investment property. We’ll talk about it.”

SIX

“Looking back, my childhood was a wonder. Running barefoot on a hot summer day, catching grasshoppers, and doing it all with my best friend.”

—excerpt from the unpublished memoir,

Darling, I Must Say by Gloria Hayes

“Once again, Mr. Ferris,” I said, trying to keep my voice even, “the price for a cup of coffee went up to a dollar fifty at the beginning of the year.”

“This is highway robbery. It used to be a dollar.” He glared at me through oversized prescription glasses.

“I’m sorry.” I took a deep breath and counted to ten. It had already been a long week between the birthday party, my broken car, and that weird conversation with Mae. My patience was working overtime.

“I’m on a fixed income, you know.”

“I know.”

He muttered something under his breath and slapped down two quarters on the counter. “I should take it out of your tip.”

I barely contained my eye roll. “But how will I survive without that quarter?”

With one last dirty look, he turned and stomped toward the door. That was a guy who sent his grandkids a dollar bill for their birthdays and thought he was being generous.

“See you tomorrow,” I called out.

He shot a hand up and waved without turning around.

“Can I get another cup of coffee over here?” Ali Goodnight, my sister’s best friend, Abe’s little sister, and esteemed mayor of Two Harts, yelled from across the café.

“Me, too,” Mae chimed in.

I took my time grabbing the coffee pot and stopped twice to refill cups before I found my way to the corner booth where Ali, Mae, and Ellie sat. An unholy trinity. The three of them had a standing coffee break every Thursday at nine in the morning.